Sneve: Pierre pushing back on Sioux Falls government secrecy

Dust-ups between Sioux Falls City Hall and city councilors are spilling over to the state Legislature.

South Dakota's largest city has long been the big kid on the block when it comes to the state's communities. But leading the state in population, development and often times innovation can come with challenges.

Among them are political rifts that often fall on a rural-urban dividing line. Other times, pushback is not about geography, but fueled by specific policy differences among those who lead Sioux Falls and the state.

"Some of these bills ... revolve around what’s happened in Sioux Falls as far as the mayor trying to rule with a little more authority than what he should have," District 10 Rep. Steve Haugaard (R-Sioux Falls) said during a recent visit with constituents.

Haugaard was referring to a series of bills that take aim at Mayor Mike Huether's kiss-and-don't-tell relationship with the private sector. Senate Bill 84 would prohibit governments from entering confidential settlements without the involvement of the courts. The bill was inspired by a once-secret settlement between the city of Sioux Falls and builders of the Denny Sanford Premier Center.

Another bill would require financial disclosure for private developers partnering with governments on large-scale capital projects - think the mixed-use parking ramp the city is building with Legacy Developments.

The push and pull dynamic between Sioux Falls and the rest of the state isn't unique to South Dakota. Every state in the union with diverse economies and urban and rural pockets experience the same thing: Cultural friction when the big cities and their progressive ideas rub against more conservative ideologies found in less populated parts of a state.

It's Chicago versus downstate Illinois. It's New York City versus upstate New York. It's Denver against the ranchers in western Colorado. And in South Dakota, it's west river or east river. Or it used to be, anyway.

As populations along Interstate 29 have grown and those in the west have declined, that dividing line has shifted in recent decades, says Jon Schaff, a political scientist at Northern State University.

"The James River has really become more of the dividing line in South Dakota," he said. "It's a difference in political culture and there's definitely a rural versus urban political culture."

Former Sioux Falls Mayor Rick Knobe admits his administration was the catalyst for some annexation rules that exist today.

When first elected as mayor in the late 1970s, annexation laws required newly acquired city land to be transferred into the school district of the same town. So when Knobe's administration pushed hard on annexing a major swath of land northeast of Sioux Falls for more sewer and water infrastructure, the Brandon Valley School District dug in its heels and helped convince lawmakers the policy wasn't equitable for smaller communities.

Today, the annexing of land doesn't impact school district boundaries.

Knobe said some of disputes are based in envy. Rural communities struggling with budgets and population decline can get jealous of the riches that grace Sioux Falls.

Other times, it's the city getting too ambitious.

"It just depends on the arrogance of legislators in Pierre and the arrogance of elected officials in Sioux Falls," Knobe said.

Mayor Huether opted not to comment for this column, but City Hall spokeswoman Heather Hitterdal said the administration has come to expect some pushback from time to time.

"Sioux Falls is thriving and getting things done on behalf of our citizens," she said. "These wins, along with the paths that got us there, make the news in South Dakota, so it comes as no surprise that our state's lawmakers may get some ideas based on the positive things happening here."